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Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Cultivating a variety of plants is a fantastic opportunity to observe science in action! The way heirloom and hybrid tomatoes grow is very different and noticeable when compared side by side. This year, we'll be studying how these varieties grow:

Pineapple heirloom tomato. Isn't the variegated red and yellow fruit gorgeous? The fruit is large and organic in shape, not perfectly round.

In our region, the temperature rises very quickly. Larger tomatoes are a bit trickier to grow than the cherry and smaller fruits. Even with regular watering, they can split once the temperature rises. Logging the temperatures in a journal will help us estimate:

At what temperatures the fruit tend to split more easily

How long the fruit takes to mature at different temperatures

What the ideal temperatures are for larger tomatoes vs. cherry

What would the garden be without scientific observation? ;)

Chef Jeff's yellow cherry version is another premium variety we'll be observing. The bright yellow flesh looks so bright and beautiful! Again, our journal will chart temperature -- to see if and how temperature changes affect the yield, quality, and overall fruit size.

Green Zebra looks to be absolutely breathtaking. Fruit like this is the reason people grow and treasure their heirloom tomatoes! Extraordinary, juicy, large green tomatoes boast impressive yellow variegation. How tart will this green variety be? Only one way to test...

Of course, you always need a control group. Super Sweet 100 is a common red cherry hybrid available at the big box home improvement stores. Any guesses on how it will fruit compared to the yellow specialty variety? Will it continue to fruit well past the larger varieties?

Monday, March 30, 2015

One my third grader got some meaty books under her belt, I couldn't wait to introduce her to Cornelia Funke! Of all the loot, Dragon Rider was the first book she began reading.

Dragon Rider is a glorious 544 pages. Now that's a whopper! If it wasn't quite so long, it would definitely be a selection for homeschool book club. Prepping activities for this book is going to be a blast...

Does Paolini's Eragondraw inspiration from Funke? These books are just begging for compare and contrast activity.

Also new this week: Inkheart, The Familiars, The Very Nearly Honorable League of Pirates: Magic Magic Marks the Spot, and The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail.

Happy reading!

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire from The Captive Reader and Linda from Silly Little Mischief that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week from Claire's blog. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries.

PROJECT/ Recreate one of the Snow Queen's events from the story. The results? Misery bird in flight, the Snow Queen's forest of ice and snow, and the Wintertide Clock. Sadly, I forgot to take pics of all the compositions :(

MATERIALS/ To recreate this project, students draw their design with a white crayon. Then watercolor over the crayon. The crayon will 'resist' the watercolor and stay white. Lastly, sprinkle with salt to get the snowflake effect.

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

If you want to engage discussion about a book, it's fun to use a game instead of formal questions. Why not create a bingo game with people, places, and things from a story? That's exactly what I did for our homeschool book club for Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy by Karen Foxlee.

Print-bingo.com is awesome! So easy to use and you can create custom bingo cards from your own word lists. All these bingo cards were created at print-bingo.com for FREE!

To make the cards and calling sheet easy to reuse, simply slide them in a plastic sleeve. Students make a line through the word as it is called with a dry erase marker. If you have access to a laminator, you could also laminate the bingo cards instead.

As each word is called, use the opportunity to ask students about their comprehension. If an item is called, who does it belong to or why is it important? Ask students to describe character personality traits or for important events central to that character. Everyone loves chiming in with details - so enjoy!

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

SYNOPSIS
While exploring a London museum, Ophelia stumbles onto the imprisoned Marvelous Boy. Can Ophelia brave danger to free him? Will she find the One Other, the only person who can defeat the Snow Queen? With three days until the Snow Queen's evil plans are unleashed, there's no time to lose.

REVIEWBilled as a modern twist on the Snow Queen fairy tale, Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy is so much more. It's in the vein of a traditional fairy tale. Enter spooky/creepy elements and expected morals. Prepare for ghosts, dangerous mythical animals, and a conniving villain.

The point of view alternates between the Marvelous Boy and Ophelia. The Marvelous Boy recounts his quest and adventures from the time he was chosen by wizards to seek the One Other (the only one who can defeat the Snow Queen). Ophelia narrates the present day story as it occurs in London.Ophelia, the Marvelous Boy, and the King are all bound by the fact they have lost or are separated from people they love.Ophelia's mother has died, the Marvelous Boy left his mother to go on a quest, and a boy King is orphaned. Each deals with their loss in a very different way.

Though Ophelia's family doesn't discuss her mother (Susan), Ophelia is still hears her mother's voice. Is Susan really talking to her, guiding her to bravery? Or is it all in Ophelia's mind? It's up to you to decide.

The ending left me wanting more...perhaps the Marvelous Boy has more stories to tell. I would love to see a book from his viewpoint. What does he encounter on his travels home? What does he find when he gets there?

RATING

4 of 5 Stars/Recommended for girls who love realistic fiction as well as fairy tales. A strong first children's novel for Karen Foxlee! As a writer of adult literature, some of her concepts will be lost on younger readers. This book begs for rich discussions - morals, feelings, positive coping skills, courage, and conscience.M's top adjectives for Ophelia and the Marvelous Boy -- surprising, interesting, amazing.

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Spirit Animals: Wild Born is an adventure packed ride. Even the most reluctant readers will be drawn into the story. My third grader flew through this book!

The author has an amazing knack for incorporating story elements from here and there -- and yet somehow it all works together.
Recognize any of these story elements? A reluctant, street savvy hero (Han Solo), powerful animals/creatures who can emerge at their companion's directive (Pokemon), the Fallen who sacrificed their lives for another world/species (Transformers), a villain in exile plotting his return (Sauron), the Greencoats whose only allegiance is to protect their world (Jedi)...you get idea. Lots of archetypal characters.

Geography buffs will enjoy the word play between Erdas and Earth: Artica (Artic), Eura (Europe), Amaya (South American Maya), and Nilo (Nile).

Despite the vocabulary not being as challenging as other books in this age range, there were still new words to learn. Expect a quick, popular fiction read. At 202 pages, Spirit Animals: Wild Born is a bit short side. Have the sequels ready!

As the series continues, the authors change. Probably to keep a certain publishing schedule. As a result, we've happily discovered several new authors (Tui T. Sutherland is our favorite so far).

Wild Born is our first book from by Brandon Mull. He has also written two other series, Fablehaven and Five Kingdoms. Both seem really popular!

SYNOPSIS
Long ago, the Spirit Animals and their companions battled to banish evil from Erdas. Four Spirit Animals (wolf, leopard, panda, and falcon) sacrificed their lives to bring peace. Yet now, the animals have fulfilled an ancient prophecy by returning.

Newly bonded to children companions (Conor, Abeke, Meilin, and Rollan), the Four Fallen must once again help banish the dark force from Erdas. Greencoats have pledged to help train, guide, and battle side by side with the children.
But before being reunited with the other three Fallen, Abeke and her leopard are intercepted by the enemy! Will Abeke believe the rebels? Which side will she ultimately fight for?

RATINGSpirit Animals: Wild Born is a must read for boys and girls who love fantasy and animal books. As a mom of girls, I appreciate the strong, capable heroines of Abeke and Meilin. Thank you, Mr. Mull and Scholastic, for writing smart, brave, talented heroines with some pretty awesome skills!
M's top adjectives for Spirit Animals: Wild Born -- adventurous, exciting, amazing.

Monday, March 9, 2015

Sowing seeds is one of the most awesome gardening adventures! If you've not had success, try these tips. Everyone CAN grow amazing plants from seeds. There is so much more to know that what is on the back of the seed packet.

Tip #1/ Pick easy to grow varieties for your planting zone. It's exciting to grow unusual varieties, and I often do. But always plant a regular variety too! If the exotic doesn't do so well, you'll always have a backup. An easy to grow variety will flourish. The exotic is bonus!

These yellow lovelies are cucumbers. Just stunning.

My backup? A plain, green pickling variety. Different varieties grown side by side make it easy to compare growth patterns, health, and yields.

Tip #2/ Use a seed starting kit. Really, use it! I have seen so many cute designs on Pinterest from egg cartons and other materials. In my experience, they get moldy and gross. Not ideal for plants. Use the right tools for the job.

Tip #3/ Plant 2-3 seeds per peat pot. Some seeds will not grow. If only one is planted per pot, you'll have empty pots. Empty pots are frustrating and completely avoidable. An extra seed in the peat pot will ensure beautiful green seedlings!

Tip #4/ Don't cover your seeds until you've planted them all. Inevitably, you'll get interrupted and forget where you stopped planting. So just wait until all rows are planted to cover them. M likes to push the seeds down a bit with a chopstick. Then cover with a little peat from the pot.

Tip #5/ Mark north with an 'N' in Sharpie on your tray. Write down each row planting - Row 1 zinnias, Row 2 cucumbers, etc. All my row plantings are written in a dollar store composition book. When the tray is turned, you will always know which side is Row 1! And since the pages are bound together, all your information will be in one handy place.

Tip #6/ Keep the tray watered and covered. The top should look like this:

If there is no condensation on your lid, add more water or move to a warmer spot. Seeds need warmth and water to germinate and grow well. Or else they get moldy and die. Let's avoid that ;)

Tip #8/ When your larger seedlings are almost touching the top of the tray, move them to a taller plastic bin. If you don't, their stems will bend and most likely break. Broken stems will kill the plant at this stage!

I use a Sterilite bin with a lid. You can buy these anywhere. Though it's designed for hanging files, taller seedlings love it.

Remember to keep your bin moist and place in a warm/ sunny spot. As soon as the seedlings have leaves, they need sunlight to photosynthesize. Think mini-greenhouse.

My seedlings usually need at least four to six weeks in a bin or 'mini-greenhouse' environment to form strong starter plants. Open the lid each morning and night for a couple of hours to let fresh air in...

Tip #9/ Label your plants. Once the seedlings are in a larger bin, you need to know which is which. Sometimes I can figure it out the by the leaf's shape, but it's better to label unless you are really experienced. Popsicle sticks make inexpensive dividers + labels.

Any tips to share? I'd love to hear them and what you are planting.

Stay tuned for my list of crops and herbs to be planted this season. Hopefully, there will be no more ice storms...

Not surprisingly, the Dragon Slippers second and third installments are now finished. Likewise with the Menagerie.

Though excited to discover The Menagerie, the premise reminds me a bit of the Imaginary Veterinary series by Suzanne Selfors. It will be interesting to see how they are similar and different. I can't wait to read it!

M has been begging to read the Harry Potter series after seeing glimpses of the movies on television. She was surprised to see it arrive at our library, reserved just for her. I love reserving items for her and keeping them a secret. It makes trips to the library like Christmas morning, never knowing what will be on the shelf...

Happy reading!

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Claire from The Captive Reader and Linda from Silly Little Mischief that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week from Claire's blog. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries.